Apple Pie Recipe: Classic Double Crust with a Lattice Top

A classic American apple pie is entirely different from the sponge-like apple cakes popular in Eastern European kitchens. There is no cake batter here. Instead, you have two thin layers of flaky, buttery pastry—a bottom crust and a top crust—enclosing a thick, cinnamon-scented apple filling that thickens into a juicy but sliceable center as it bakes.

You can recognize a great apple pie by three things: the crust is flaky and tender, the filling is neither runny nor dry, and the apple slices hold their shape. None of it takes fancy ingredients, just a few rules: very cold butter, the right amount of cornstarch, and patience—the pie must cool for several hours before slicing.

Amounts are given in cups and spoons with grams in parentheses, and everything comes from a regular supermarket. You don't need a special pie apple, either: any firm, tart apple such as Granny Smith works just as well.

Below is the complete recipe in one handy card: you can adjust the quantities, check off what you've done, and print it out. After the card, you'll find detailed tips on the crust, filling, lattice, and baking.

Ingredients and How to Choose Them

Butter. The most important ingredient. For the crust, it must be very cold—ideally cut into cubes and kept in the freezer for 15 minutes. As it bakes, the cold butter pieces melt and leave little pockets of steam, which makes the crust flaky. If the butter melts while you're mixing, the dough will be tough and crumbly like a cookie.

Apples. You need firm, tart baking apples that soften but don't fall apart in the oven, such as Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, Braeburn, or Pink Lady. It's a great idea to mix two varieties: one tart and one sweeter. Avoid using soft apples like McIntosh for the entire filling, as they will turn into applesauce. You need a lot of apples—the mounded filling shrinks as it bakes, and a hollow gap between the filling and the top crust is the most common apple pie issue.

Cornstarch. This thickens the apple juices. Cornstarch yields a clear, glossy filling. You can also use potato starch (the same amount) or all-purpose flour (twice as much), but flour makes the filling a bit cloudier.

Pan. The classic choice is a 9-inch (23 cm) deep-dish pie pan with sloped sides. A glass pie dish lets you see if the bottom is browning, while a metal pan bakes the bottom crust the fastest. A regular 9½-inch (24 cm) cake pan won't work—its sides are too straight.

Step-by-Step Instructions

The Crust

Mix the flour with the sugar and salt. Add the cold butter cubes and use your fingertips or a pastry blender to cut them in until most of the butter is the size of peas. Don't try to blend it into fine sand—the butter pieces must remain visible.

Add the ice water a tablespoon at a time, tossing with a fork. The dough is ready when a handful holds together when squeezed, even if it still looks crumbly in the bowl. The exact amount of water depends on the flour, so you may not need all of it. Divide the dough in half, press into flat disks, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and chill for at least an hour. During this time, the flour absorbs the water and the butter firms up again.

The Filling

Peel, core, and slice the apples about ¼ inch (5–6 mm) thick. There's no need to slice them thinner—paper-thin slices will turn to mush during the long bake. Toss them with the brown sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, cinnamon, and nutmeg. If you prepare the filling ahead of time, juices will pool in the bowl—do not pour these into the pie, or alternatively, simmer them separately into a syrup and pour it over the apples once they are in the pan.

Bottom Crust, Filling, and Lattice

Roll out one dough disk on a lightly floured surface into a 12-inch (30 cm) circle, about ⅛ inch (3 mm) thick. Transfer it to the pie pan by rolling it loosely around your rolling pin, and gently press it into the bottom and sides without stretching. The edges should overhang the pan by about ½ to 1 inch (1–2 cm).

Mound the filling into the crust, piling it higher in the center. Roll out the second disk to the same size. If you want a solid top crust, drape it over the pie and cut 4–5 slits for steam to escape. For a lattice top, cut the dough into ¾- to 1-inch (2–3 cm) wide strips and weave them: lay half the strips parallel over the pie, fold back every other strip, place a perpendicular strip across, and unfold the folded strips. Repeat until the pie is covered. Trim the edges, fold them under along with the bottom crust overhang, and crimp with your fingers or a fork.

Chill the assembled pie in the refrigerator for 15 minutes before baking—the chilled dough won't shrink in the oven and will hold its crimped shape. Then, brush the top with an egg and milk wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar.

Baking and Cooling

Place the pie on a baking sheet—this will catch any bubbling juices—and bake in the lower third of the oven. Bake for 20 minutes at 425°F (220°C) to quickly set the bottom crust, then reduce the temperature to 375°F (190°C) and bake for another 40–45 minutes. The pie is done when the crust is deep golden brown and the filling is bubbling thickly through the lattice or slits. That bubbling is crucial; it means the cornstarch has boiled and the filling will thicken. If the edges brown too quickly, cover them with a ring of foil.

The hardest step is waiting. In a hot pie, the filling is still runny and will spill out as soon as you cut it. Let the pie cool on a wire rack for at least 3 hours. Once cooled, it slices beautifully, and you can always warm the individual slices before serving.

Common Mistakes

A gap between the top crust and the filling. Not enough apples were used, or they were cut too thick. Mound the filling high—it will shrink by about an inch (2–3 cm) in the oven—and slice the apples evenly so they pack together tightly.

The filling is runny and spills out. The pie was sliced while hot, not enough cornstarch was used, or it wasn't baked long enough for the filling to bubble. Stick to 3 tablespoons (25 g) of cornstarch per 2.4 lb (1.1 kg) of apples, and bake until you see thick, slow bubbles.

The bottom crust is pale and soggy. The pan was placed too high in the oven, or there was no hot start. Bake the pie in the lower third of the oven, starting at 425°F (220°C) for the first 20 minutes.

The crust is tough, not flaky. The butter got too warm, or the dough was overworked and had too much water. Keep everything cold, and only mix the dough until it just holds together.

The crust shrank and the lattice slipped. The dough was stretched when placed in the pan or wasn't chilled before baking. Let the dough rest in the fridge at both stages.

Variations and Substitutions

• The top crust. A solid top crust with slits retains more moisture, while a lattice allows the filling to thicken more and looks beautiful. A third option is to cut out leaves or circles from the dough and layer them like scales.
• Crumb topping. Instead of a second dough disk, top the pie with a crumble made of ⅔ cup (80 g) flour, 4 tablespoons (60 g) butter, and ⅓ cup (60 g) brown sugar. This is known as a Dutch apple pie.
• Spices. Cinnamon and nutmeg are the classics. A pinch of cloves, allspice, or a teaspoon of grated ginger work well too.
• Fats. You can replace part of the butter (up to a third) with lard—the crust will be even more tender, just like in vintage American recipes. Margarine is less ideal as it produces a less flaky crust.
• Store-bought dough. If you're short on time, two sheets of frozen pie crust work well. Puff pastry works too, though the pie will puff up more and won't be as tender.

A Lighter Version

Classic apple pie is one of the richest apple desserts because of its double crust, which is packed with butter. That makes the crust the best place to cut calories. Here is how much each modification changes the calories per slice (when dividing the pie into 8 slices):

Using a lattice instead of a solid top crust saves about 59 calories per slice—almost three times more than reducing the sugar in the filling. An open-faced pie with only a bottom crust has 315 calories instead of 491, but that becomes a different bake: you'll want to cover the filling with foil for the first 30 minutes of baking so the top apples don't dry out.

How Many Calories Are in an Apple Pie?

One slice, when dividing the pie into 8 pieces (about 8 oz or 230 g), has about 490 calories. The slice is large and rich—if you divide the pie into 12 slices, one piece will have about 330 calories. As you can see below, more than half of the calories come from the crust, not the apples.

How to Serve

Apple pie is traditionally served slightly warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream—a combination known as à la mode. The warm pie filling softens slightly, and the melting ice cream turns into a sweet sauce. Another classic choice is unsweetened whipped cream, which perfectly balances the sweet filling.

Cut the pie with a sharp serrated knife: it makes it easier to cut through the crispy lattice without squishing the filling. Remove the first slice with a pie server by sliding it under the bottom crust—the rest will come out easily. If you're baking the pie for a holiday, bake it a day ahead: the filling will set completely overnight, and you can simply warm the pie in the oven for 10–15 minutes before serving.

How to Store and Freeze

Covered at room temperature, the pie stays delicious for 2 days, or up to 4 days in the refrigerator. Before serving, warm the slice for 10 minutes in a 350°F (175°C) oven—the crust will become crispy again. Microwaving will make it soggy.

A baked and completely cooled pie can be frozen for up to 3 months—either whole or in slices, wrapped tightly. Thaw in the refrigerator and reheat in the oven. You can also freeze an unbaked pie: do not thaw it, just bake it straight from the freezer, extending the baking time at 375°F (190°C) by 20–25 minutes.

If you want a quicker bake that doesn't require rolling dough or waiting hours, try an easy apple cake. For pastry lovers, a French apple tart with thin apple slices or an apple crumble pie with a streusel topping similar to a Dutch apple pie are great choices.